Today, 20 June 2020, I am addressing you on behalf of H.E. Moussa Faki Mahamat, the Chairperson of the African Union Commission, during this virtual meeting. Virtual meetings have become our new normal imposed by the COVID 19 pandemic.

Ladies and Gentlemen;

Every day, thousands of people are displaced from their homes due to conflicts, natural disaster, human rights violations, persecution, terrorist activities as well as political crisis. Africa continues to host a large number of forcibly displaced persons in the world, totaling to 27 million, 19.2 million of whom are internally displaced persons and 7.8 refugees, with many more asylum seekers and migrants.

The majority of them, who are very vulnerable, are women and children. These women and children often experience sexual and gender-based violence from a variety of actors – including armed groups, members of their families, and even the defence and security forces. These people who do not have access to protection, markets, finance and employment opportunities are exposed to abuse.

World Refugee Day therefore provides us with an opportunity to reflect and reaffirm Africa’s determination to address the root causes of forced displacement with a view to finding durable solution. The UN’s global theme for this year “Everyone Can Make a Difference, Every Action Counts” is in line with the appeal of the UN Secretary General and the Chairperson of the African Union Commission to “cease global fire” as a collective endeavour for a conflict-free Africa and the challenges of forced displacement in Africa. The AU theme for year 2020 which is: Silencing the Guns: Creating Conducive Conditions for Africa’s Development’ is also a call to concretize this commitment. Preventing, managing and resolving conflicts and other crises will go a long way in finding lasting solutions to forced displacement in Africa. Efforts to establish the global ceasefire should be intensified in order to find lasting solutions for durable peace and stability on the Africa continent.

Ladies and Gentlemen;

COVID-19 has continued to heavily affect our communities at the social, economic and political levels, with a greater impact on refugees, asylum seekers, Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs), migrants. People in vulnerable situations such as the elderly and those living with disabilities are not spared. Unfortunately, we are now witnessing the first confirmation of cases of COVID-19 among refugees and IDPs communities. The displaced populations live in very precarious situations, which could accelerate the spread of the coronavirus. The pandemic has accentuated challenges in all areas, especially in humanitarian, socio-economic, peace and security as well as in governance. It risks rolling back gains in our collective efforts to meet the seven (7) aspirations of AU Agenda 2063 and the seventeen (17) Sustainable Development Goals of the United Nations’ Agenda 2020.

Therefore, we call for an integrated approach to support refugees, internally displaced persons, with particular attention to women and girls during this period of COVID-19. We also call for a collective, inclusive and multisectoral approach to leave no one behind. We must guarantee the integration of gender dimension in all programs, substantial funding, specific projects for refugee women and girls.

We stand in solidarity with the refugees and other categories of forcibly displace persons. On this day, I have a special thought for the internally displaced persons and refugees who are currently in conflict zones, in particular the North of Africa region, the Lake Chad basin, the Horn of Africa, the Sahel region, the Great Lakes region and part of Southern Africa.

We encourage the African Union Member States to ensure that the efforts being deployed by governments go beyond health responses to the COVID-19 pandemic to also comprehensively take into account political and socio-economic impacts of the pandemic. The effects of natural disasters and climate change, poverty, hunger, unemployment, social inequalities, lack of clean water, proper shelter and sanitation, urban slums and informal settlements, as well as food insecurity should not be overlooked as this situation make refugees and other forcibly displaced persons even more vulnerable.

We also remain united with AU Member States who have continued to welcome and support refugees, asylum seekers, IDPs, migrants and stateless persons in the spirit of Pan-Africanism and in accordance with international and regional frameworks governing their protection and assistance; as provided for in the AU Agenda 2063 and the Declaration of the 33rd Ordinary Session of the Assembly of the African Union adopted in February 2020 on the theme of the year 2019.

20th June 2020, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia